Removable Finger Pad Apparatus

ABSTRACT

A fingertip pad apparatus may include a layer of a material, such as a high-clarity polyethylene terephthalate (PET), that enables electrical contact between the user&#39;s fingertip and the touch screen. The fingertip pad apparatus includes an adhesive bottom layer to enable adherence to the user&#39;s finger and easy removable when the user wishes to dispose of the apparatus. The fingertip pad apparatus has a size that approximates that of a human fingertip. The fingertip pad apparatus may also include an antimicrobial coating on a top surface. The antimicrobial coating may be made from, for example, silver ions in an active silver zeolite carrier or photocatalytic metal oxide nanoparticles.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 65/059,569 filed Jul. 31, 2020, the entire content of which is incorporated herein.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates generally to objects intended to be worn on a finger of a user. More specifically, the present invention relates to a disposable finger apparatus that is designed to be worn on a finger, and serves as a physical barrier between the finger and the screen of any modern touch screen device.

BACKGROUND

In today's technology driven world, there is an ever increasing multitude of devices which operate using a touch screen user interface. Such touch screen user interfaces provide fairly precise control as well as the advantage of allowing the screen to occupy the majority of the area of the front of a mobile device and minimizing or eliminated the need for mechanical input mechanisms such as, for example, buttons, switches, pointing devices, etc.

Additionally, touch screen devices can be highly intuitive, allowing the user to operate the mobile device swiftly and with ease even if the user is not very technologically knowledgeable.

The variety of touch screen devices available on the market today range from the increasingly common smartphones to tablet and desktop computers with touch screen monitors. All of these devices require the user to touch the screen of the device in order to interact and execute certain commands as well as activating certain functions of the device.

As mentioned above, the touch screen interface offers an efficient and intuitive interface between the user and the machine, and as a result it has become a common user interface found on a wide variety of devices, including personal computing and mobile communication devices, and have expanded to automobile controls, household appliances, banking machines, information kiosks, etc.

One disadvantage of touch screen technologies is that they must be touched by the human user. The act of continuously touching the screen by one or a number of different users is that an oily residue may be left behind on the screen whenever a user touches it. All humans possess a natural oil coating over the skin that is present to help the skin retain moisture. This natural oil, sebum, is secreted by the sebaceous glands located beneath the epidermis. Although it is known that the palms of the human hand and the finger pads do not have sebaceous glands, the sebum is easily transferred onto those areas, especially the finger pads, if the person touches other areas of their skin. When a user with accumulated oil, dirt, and/or grime on a fingertip uses that finger to operate a touch screen, that material may be transferred onto the screen of a touch screen device, resulting in a smearing or smudging that obscures the screen, especially in bright lighting conditions.

This dirt and/or grime can also contribute to the creation very small scratches on the screen. If these small scratches accumulate over time, the screen may become more and more difficult to view and use.

Another potential hazard, especially when a number of users interact with a public interactive device, such as automatic teller machines (ATMs), video rental machines, self-checkouts kiosks in stores, etc., is the possibility of one or more users may leave pathogens on the touch screen.

All of these public interactive devices serve a purpose in the modern world, and many people interact with them, making them a potential hub of pathogen activity.

It would be desirable to provide a way to protect users and touch screen interfaces from the problems discussed above.

SUMMARY

In an embodiment, a removable finger pad apparatus is provided to enable a user to be interactive with a touch screen interface without transferring oil, dirt, or grime to the touch screen, and also protect the user from harmful microbes that may be present on the touchscreen.

The fingertip pad apparatus may include a layer of a material, such as a high-clarity polyethylene terephthalate (PET), that enables electrical contact between the user's fingertip and the touch screen. The fingertip pad apparatus includes an adhesive bottom layer to enable adherence to the user's finger and easily removable when the user wishes to dispose of the apparatus. The fingertip pad apparatus has a size that approximates that of a human fingertip.

The fingertip pad apparatus may also include an antimicrobial coating on a top surface. The antimicrobial coating may be made from, for example, silver ions in an active silver zeolite carrier or photocatalytic metal oxide nanoparticles.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated herein and constitute part of this specification, illustrate exemplary aspects of the claims, and together with the general description given above and the detailed description given below, serve to explain the features of the claims.

FIG. 1A is a perspective view of a removable finger pad according to an embodiment.

FIG. 1B is a sectional view of a removable finger pad according to an embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the finger pad when flexed into a different shape.

FIG. 3 depicts a variety of shapes of the finger pad according to different embodiments.

FIG. 4 shows a peel off sticker sheet for distribution of a finger pad according to an embodiment to a user.

FIG. 5 shows the peel off sticker sheet with a user peeling off one of the finger pads stored thereon.

FIG. 6 shows a user interacting with a touch screen mobile device while using the finger pad.

FIG. 7 shows a view of a user's hand, displaying how the finger pad can be worn on any desired finger(s).

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Various aspects will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Wherever possible, the same reference numbers will be used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts. References made to particular examples and implementations are for illustrative purposes and are not intended to limit the scope of the claims.

FIG. 1A shows a removable finger pad apparatus according to an embodiment. The finger pad apparatus 100 may be in the form and shape of a flexible disk. The finger pad apparatus 100 includes a top, interface surface 102, for interacting with a touch screen device, and a bottom, adhesive surface 104, for removably attaching to a user's fingertip.

The interface surface 102 allows the user to touch the touch screen without transferring any oils or dirt onto the screen. Because the interface surface comes into direct contact with the touch screen, it is necessary to keep the interface surface as smooth and as clean as possible such that the touch screen is not damaged in any way and no dirt or oil is transferred onto the touch screen.

In an embodiment, the finger pad apparatus 100 may be constructed from any of a number of materials, including, but not, limited to cloth, paper, and plastics. The only

limiting factor when considering a material to be used in the manufacture of the finger pad apparatus 100 is the fact that some types of touch screens may require materials with certain properties in order for the user to interact with them.

For example, capacitive screens, which are among the most common type of touch screens, are made up of multiple layers of glass and plastic, coated with a conductor material like indium tin oxide or copper. This conductive material responds when contacted by another electrical conductor, like a bare finger. When a user touches the touch screen, an electric circuit is completed at the point where the finger makes contact, changing the electrical charge at this location. It may be necessary to use a specific type of material in order to ensure that the user touching the screen while wearing the finger pad apparatus 100 still causes a change in capacitance that can be tracked by the touch screen.

In a preferred embodiment, the base layer of the finger pad apparatus 100 is a 2-millimeter high-clarity polyethylene terephthalate (PET) film. The adhesive applied on the adhesive surface may be, e.g., a removable acrylic designed for use on smooth surfaces such as glass, metal and plastic. For example, a product marketed as 3MTM Adhesive R3500 is such a removable adhesive that offers UV resistance, good initial tack, and long-term adhesion with clean removability.

In an embodiment, the interface surface 102 may include an antimicrobial, scratch, abrasion and chemical resistant hardcoat 106, as shown in FIG. 1B. The top clear hardcoat layer may be treated with a silver ion or other type of antimicrobial agent to protect the film from a broad spectrum of bacteria, mold and mildew. In an embodiment, a silver ion antimicrobial control mechanism within the hardcoat utilizes an active silver zeolite carrier that interrupts metabolism of cells and prevents cell reproduction within the film itself. Other types of antimicrobial coatings, such as various photocatalytic metal oxide nanoparticles may also be used.

The finger pad apparatus 100 is capable of deforming as can be seen in FIG. 2. The purpose of the deformation is to allow the finger pad apparatus to conform to the contours of the human finger to which it is intended to be affixed.

Although described as a flexible disk in other embodiments, some examples of other shapes that the finger pad apparatus 100 may take can be seen in FIG. 3. These alternative shapes may provide an aesthetic appeal to certain users while still allowing the present invention to function as intended. It is also possible that the present invention may bear a wide variety of different colors and patterns so as to provide even more aesthetic appeal to the user.

In order to protect the adhesive surface, a number of finger pad apparatus 100 may be stored on a sticker sheet 400, as shown in FIG. 4. When the user wishes to use a finger pad apparatus 100, it may peeled off of the sticker sheet 400, as shown in FIG. 5.

Once the user peels one of the finger pad apparatus off of the sticker sheet, they may adhere it to a finger tip and proceed to interact with a touch screen 600, as shown in FIG. 6. As shown in FIG. 7, the user may choose which finger(s) they wish to adhere the finger pad apparatus 100. When the user is finished using the finger pad apparatus 100, it may be easily peeled of the user's finger and disposed of.

The preceding description of the disclosed aspects is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to make, implement, or use the claims. Various modifications to these aspects will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the generic principles defined herein may be applied to other aspects without departing from the scope of the claims. Thus, the present disclosure is not intended to be limited to the aspects illustrated herein but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the claims disclosed herein. 

1. A removable finger pad apparatus comprising: a base layer having a top surface and a bottom surface and a size approximating a human fingertip pad; and a layer of adhesive attached to the bottom surface.
 2. The removable finger pad apparatus of claim 1, wherein the base layer comprises a material capable of enabling electrical contact between a capacitive touch screen and a human finger when interposed between the touch screen and finger.
 3. The removable finger pad apparatus of claim 2, wherein the material comprises polyethylene terephthalate.
 4. The removable finger pad apparatus of claim 1, further comprising an antimicrobial coating on the top surface.
 5. The removable finger pad apparatus of claim 4, wherein the antimicrobial coating comprises silver ions in an active silver zeolite carrier.
 6. The removable finger pad apparatus of claim 4, wherein the antimicrobial coating comprises photocatalytic metal oxide nanoparticles. 